For 916 reviews, this publication has graded:
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75% higher than the average critic
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5% same as the average critic
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20% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 7.9 points higher than other critics.
(0-100 point scale)
Average TV Show review score: 71
| Highest review score: |
Critic Score
100
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| Lowest review score: |
Critic Score
0
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Score distribution:
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Positive: 677 out of 677
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Mixed: 0 out of 677
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Negative: 0 out of 677
677
tv reviews
- By critic score
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 100
Watching Jerry, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Jason Alexander, and Michael Richards bounce off Larry David makes you realize what Curb had been missing: worthy opponents for Larry to argue and scheme with. -
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Reviewed by
Gillian Flynn 100
The fifth and final season of David Simon's peerlessly acted, stunningly scripted, revolutionary drama of 1,000 moving parts kicks off Jan. 6. -
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Reviewed by
Gillian Flynn 100
Dark, textured, and lively--this is how Dickens is done. [20 Jan 2006, p.66] -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 100
Abrams and Lindelof have created one of only two new shows this season at the end of which I was yearning to see a second hour right away. (The other is ABC's "Desperate Housewives": It could be hoot heaven, could be labored camp.) I was tempted to hedge on my final grade, because Lost is the kind of show that could go anywhere. Then I realized that's exactly why I should commit to the ride.- Posted Feb 16, 2013
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 100
What's great about the series this season is that you can dive deep into its familiar-yet-fresh bubbling stew of physics, ? numerology, and smoke monsters...or you can just skim across its blinding-sun surface, grooving on the thwarted romances, ?the time-shifting nosebleeds, and how great Kate looks in a business power suit and heels. -
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Reviewed by
Tim Stack 100
The underrated bigamy show returns from a too-long hiatus with a plot-packed season 3 opener, and, not for the first time, the females deliver the best moments. -
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Reviewed by
Gillian Flynn 100
The best worst series on TV. [30 Sep 2005, p.89] -
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Critic Score 100
Sin City dazzle adds spice to the cooking competition's season 6 premiere....But it's the fresh crop of cheftestants that'll really whet your appetite. -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 100
By the end of the opening hour, you're already engaged by Coach Taylor's challenge to turn the East Dillon stragglers into guys who can complete the phrase ''Clear eyes, full hearts, can't lose'' without mumbling. And Friday Night Lights is headed for more touchdown episodes than you can count. -
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Reviewed by
Jessica Shaw 100
I'll admit, I was a wee bit worried after last season's annoying Georgina story line and relentless drama about the past that haunts Serena (Blake Lively). But fear not, groupies: Summer's been good to this Girl. -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 100
For all its bleakness and darkness, there's a glowing exhilaration about this series: It's a feel-good show about feeling really bad. -
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Reviewed by
Dalton Ross 100
Four words: Best. Eviction. Episode. Ever. The only thing that could have made it even more delicious? Zombie Chenbot.- Posted Oct 25, 2010
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 100
They say analyzing comedy kills it, but in this case, it's one revelation after another. Add rare footage of their early years, some non-Python TV appearances, tense on-set footage filmed during the making of their movies, and clips of their greatest hits, and you've got Monty nirvana. -
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Critic Score 100
The four-part docuseries begins with ''The Memory Loss Tapes,'' a moving look at the disease's progression through seven patients at various stages. It's not a question of if you'll cry, it's how soon. -
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Critic Score 100
It's the sarcasm (see: Adam Scott), smart dialogue, and refreshing take on the workplace comedy that make the somewhat depressing premise a totally raucous party. -
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Critic Score 100
The yuk-filled second ep of the sophomore season rectifies this neglect with a plot that tempts Jeff to return to his soul-corrupting old firm, much to the dismay of his community-college study buddies. -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 100
The artistic achievement of Treme is that it blends bluntness with the nuances of gorgeous music. -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 100
Tremendously clever fun, Masterpiece Mystery! presents the first of three modernizations of the Sherlock Holmes tales.- Posted Oct 22, 2010
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 100
Olyphant is surrounded by a terrific supporting cast, including Dirty Sexy Money's Natalie Zea as Raylan's ex-wife and Nick Searcy (Deke Slayton in From the Earth to the Moon) as his deceptively cornpone boss. But in the end, it comes down to hard stares and that combination of drawled amusement and sudden violence that make him so cool yet exciting. -
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Reviewed by
Jessica Shaw 100
It's getting difficult to keep coming up with superlatives for this sophomore-season drama, especially with a thrilling and tantalizing episode like tonight's.- Posted Oct 20, 2010
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 100
It possesses a different rhythm from any other show on TV. [13 Apr 2012, p.73]Posted Apr 6, 2012 -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 100
C.K. is writing, directing, and starring up a storm here, and his usual opening-segment stand-up routine, involving nearsightedness, is funnier than most sitcoms are in an entire season.- Posted Jun 25, 2012
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 100
The arc of this character--series creator Vince Gilligan's invention of Walter White as a sick soul--is, it's clear now. one of the great narratives in Television histpory. [13 Jul 2012, p.62]Posted Jul 16, 2012 -
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Reviewed by
Jessica Shaw 100
There are funny moments and heartbreaking ones on this fascinating docuseries. [13 Jul 2012, p.68]Posted Jul 6, 2012 -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 100
Outspoken yet charismatic, politically radical yet traditionalist in his love of family, the man is captured in all his complexity.- Posted Jul 24, 2012
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 100
Laura Dern and Mike White continue their bold, hilarious, tremendously moving exploration of Amy Jellicoe's ongoing attempt to give meaning to her life. [18 Jan 2013, p.74]Posted Jan 11, 2013 -
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Critic Score 100
Not since Freaks and Geeks has adolescent humiliation been handled so warmly.- Posted Feb 20, 2013
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Reviewed by
Jeff Jensen 100
Slowly, a smartly constructed epic is taking shape.- Posted May 15, 2013
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Reviewed by
Melissa Maerz 100
There’s something communal about Schumer’s approach to comedy. It’s not just about punchlines. It’s about conversations. And she makes the women around her seem funnier, just by letting them in on the joke. Some of the best moments happen when she’s interviewing people, inspiring the type of real talk you don’t often get to hear once you’ve outgrown the girls’ locker room.- Posted Apr 30, 2013
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Reviewed by
Gillian Flynn 91
The more leisurely pace allows for some singular moments. [17 Mar 2006, p.101] -
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Reviewed by
Gillian Flynn 91
[The first episodes are] four of 24's best hours to date. [20 Jan 2006, p.59] -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
Season openers don't get much more incendiary: There are severed feet, a ''beef'' between rival Armenian, Mexican, and Salvadoran gangs, and a murder committed by another member of Vic's Strike Team. -
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Critic Score 91
For such a quick-witted comedy, the eight episode commentaries aren't as sharp as you'd expect, and Carell is entirely absent. But some three hours of deleted scenes--funnier takes of already hilarious sequences, beefed-up stories for the supporting cast--compensate. -
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Critic Score 91
A trite, untrue mental-illness mystery insults the show's high IQ, but doesn't diminish the opener's capture-the-imagination thesis: that a redeemed House can be just as compelling as a rude House. -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
Any show that can accommodate decadent cruelty, tragic bravery, and political divisiveness is one you ought to be watching, frakkin' spaceships or not. -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
The series' brilliant conceit is that enemies are often sane and rational, and many good guys and gals are obsessed, flawed, and ruthless. -
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Reviewed by
Tim Stack 91
It returns with an emotional and surprising (hint: you'll never look at icicles the same way) premiere. -
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Critic Score 91
The show immediately bursts at the seems with personality. [16 Nov 2007, p.68] -
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Reviewed by
Alynda Wheat 91
Tim Gunn still motherhens the designers, the dramatic arcs feel familiar (one designer is a recovering addict, another gave up a career as a surgeon), and--wonders to behold--there's even a branch of the fabric store Mood in Runway's new Los Angeles home. -
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Reviewed by
Gillian Flynn 91
Prison Break has the dark social hierarchies of Oz and the clever inventions of Escape From Alcatraz. -
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Critic Score 91
Thank you, HBO, for airing Australia's outrageous Office-like, eight-part high school mockumentary, rather than getting a lesser comedian to do an American version. -
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Reviewed by
Henry Goldblatt 91
We never thought we'd laugh out loud with a laugh track again. [23 Sep 2005, p.81] -
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Reviewed by
Alynda Wheat 91
You know this Dr. Who spin-off aims to please when the return of Capt. Jack Harkness (John Barrowman) isn't even the big news.... With [Capt.] John [James Marsters] adding such a fun, unhinged element, it's a shame these two crazy kids broke up in the first place. -
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Reviewed by
Jennifer Armstrong 91
It's Quantum Leap meets The Streets of San Francisco--with narry a C, S, or I in sight. [28 Jul 2006, p.56] -
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Reviewed by
Dalton Ross 91
Those unfamiliar with the film may find some scenes--like when the actors break character to tell their real-life stories--a bit jarring. [7 Apr 2006, p.54] -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
Rock manages to layer in quieter scenes between Baldwin and Jack McBrayer's Kenneth the Page that remind you of an iron law of feather-light farce: No matter how crazy the characters seem to us, they have to relate to each other as though they're making perfect sense. -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
One of the addictive things about Damages is its ability to work what initially seems to be a peripheral character like Olyphant's into the series' core plot in a startling way. All credit is due to the show's creators--brothers Glenn and Todd A. Kessler and Daniel Zelman--who wrote the first two episodes with smoothly intricate plotting and bursts of melodrama that rarely spill over the top. -
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Reviewed by
Gillian Flynn 91
The biggest worry with The Nine is that its mystery will start to crumble after a dozen episodes or so. But for now, it's one smooth, creepy, cool operation. -
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Reviewed by
Alynda Wheat 91
Mirren's Elzabeth is emotional... But with that comes soemthing as rare on TV as it is rewarding--a love affair involving people over the age of 50. [21 Apr 2006, p.67] -
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Critic Score 91
The series occasionally displays the sweat stains of overexertion in the first few episodes... But once the intricate, greasy machinery of the policial/personal gets cranking in Brotherhood, there's no stopping the Caffee clan. [21 Jul 2006, p.59] -
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Reviewed by
Gillian Flynn 91
If Brotherhood isn't as brilliant as The Wire, it's just as believable. The cast is so solid. -
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Reviewed by
Alynda Wheat 91
This sly Britcom is like a C-SPAN spin-off of... The Office. [12 May 2006, p.75] -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
Any fears you had that marriage and a baby would dull the sharp edge of Dexter--I admit it, I was worried--have been thoroughly allayed by season 4's wonderfully swift, witty, and violent start. -
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Reviewed by
Alynda Wheat 91
The access is such that you almost wish every member of Congress had a TV crew. [25 Aug 2006, p.81] -
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Reviewed by
Keith Staskiewicz 91
Less action-packed than BSG, but still awash in the familiar themes of life, loss, identity, and big frakkin' robots with guns. -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
The ceaseless ways in which Milch and Nunn challenge our expectations about how families, friends, and strangers are meant to convey their fealty to each other, along with some fine hard-boiled dialogue and fisticuffs, suggest great continuing pleasures. -
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Reviewed by
Jessica Shaw 91
The contestants are highly entertaining. [2 Feb 2007, p.116] -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
If it weren't for the commercials and basic-cable cutaways from some violence, you'd swear you were watching a classic Western. [23 Jun 2006, p.66] -
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Reviewed by
Gillian Flynn 91
The sheer number of plotlines can be overwhelming, but the images--flowers dropped on the side of the road, a dusty van sliding away--are relentlessly riveting. And the series only gets better from here. [5 Oct 2007, p.66] -
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Critic Score 91
Where her movie overstayed its welcome, the quick-shot format of TV works beautifully. The result is haphazard, amoral, ridiculous, wildly offensive...and, you know, totally hilarious. -
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Reviewed by
Clark Collis 91
Think Big Love-meets-Carnivale and you're in the ballpark, but The Riches boasts its own weird, violent, druggy, hilarious mix. [16 Mar 2007, p.63] -
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Critic Score 91
MG is wonderfully absurd and the supporting cast is satisfyingly straight-faced. [21 Mar 2008, p.53] -
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Reviewed by
Gillian Flynn 91
There are no big sociopolitical statements here, no guerilla-style confrontations, no scenes of squirmy awkwardness, no multilayered pop culture references. It's just a very smart, very funny show. -
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Reviewed by
Gillian Flynn 91
Wise steals this, show, and his costars aren't easy prey. What's more, the dynamic is quite clever. [28 Sep 2007, p.94] -
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Reviewed by
Gillian Flynn 91
The premiere jumps the series from 1960 to 1962, but it plays coy with most of last season's cliff-hangers, including the whereabouts of Peggy's son with married exec Pete Campbell (played with oily brilliance by Vincent Kartheiser). It's quite a tease, but the debut proves Mad Men is as smart as ever -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
Our greatest pleasure lies in anticipation of what is to come this season. -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
True Blood is, if anything, faster, sleeker, more vicious, more fun that it already was. Yum-yum. -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
Breaking Bad has, in short, everything you could want from an hour-long show: suspense, laughs, danger, and poignance. -
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Reviewed by
Jessica Shaw 91
The sequel ditches the '70s for the '80s--but the original's hard-boiled plots, retro-pop score, and scene-stealing politically incorrect Gene Hunt (Philip Glenister) remain. -
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Reviewed by
Gillian Flynn 91
The series shows the darker side of Belle's work without getting into that porno-punishing crap so often disguised as morality lessons. The series, like Belle, is far too smart to succumb to such an average attitude. -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
A holiday special done right. [30 Nov 2007, p.126] -
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Reviewed by
Gillian Flynn 91
At one point, before a press conference, Dern morphs her face from that of a human being into Harris' crazy-cuckoo public mask, and the moment is absolutely chilling. Fair? Debatable, but like Recount, it's a gorgeous bit of political theater. -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
Who says TV doesn't make history thought-provokingly exciting? -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
Kill pays both you and its subjects two solid compliments: It doesn't scream ''Take heed: This is a work of art!'' And it lets you form your own opinions about what its social commentary is. -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
What lifts Eastbound & Down away from mere crudball humor is McBride's ongoing love affair with the lower middle class. -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
This portrait of a profane, low-down egomaniac--excuse me, he prefers "Christ figure"--continues to amaze. McBride's willingness to play depression, amorality, and selfishness for laughs is awesome. -
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Reviewed by
Jessica Shaw 91
Without the annoying melodrama [like "Desperate Housewives"], you become more emotionally hooked by the lives of the four complex and original characters. -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
Unlike The X-Files, Fringe has a sense of humor that cuts through its gloom. Credit Jackson for his raised-eyebrow dubiousness whenever things threaten to turn absurdly weird, and Noble for making his brilliant acid casualty a poignant, eager-to-please man, constantly sifting through his prodigious brain to locate the truth from fragmented memories. -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
It's a midlife triumph, a series that takes a well-worn theme and makes it unpredictable, freshly funny, and sometimes moving. -
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Reviewed by
Jessica Shaw 91
He's got a briefcase, a superhot mom, and three new buddies in social purgatory. Definite cult-show potential. -
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Critic Score 91
Dorrit is a gripping whodunit, a grand romance, and a timely rags-to-riches-and-back-again tale of financial corruption. -
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Reviewed by
Melissa Maerz 91
Prepare for gullet slicing, blood spurting, cop-versus-cop conflict, and more blood spurting. We can't get enough.- Posted Oct 24, 2011
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
I can assert that the series has benefited artistically from the business decision that concluded last season. In shuttering Sterling Cooper and launching SCDP, the show is immediately jazzed by the renewed energy and willfulness that often accompanies a start-up. -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
The tremendously exciting second-season premiere — the first of six new episodes — plunges us into numerous L.A.-cop story lines, the best of which finds Regina King's Lydia dealing with a cocky new partner -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
The first two episodes contain strong subplots about staff downsizing and rolled-back pensions, indicators that Ted is doing a better job of folding real-life resonances into its silliness. -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
Modern Family works because it does something the network sitcom hasn't managed in years: It offers a comic equation for almost every audience segment, while never blanding out the characters for mass consumption. -
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Critic Score 91
You know men who devote an absurd amount of time to mocking one another? I do, and I call them ''me and my friends.'' Maybe that's why I so enjoyed this sitcom about a group of thirtysomething pals and their fantasy football league....Or maybe it's just darn funny. -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
Rubicon doesn't have the glossy panache of Mad Men or the in-your-face confrontations of Breaking Bad, but I think that's a good thing. It establishes Rubicon as its own distinct creation from AMC. -
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Reviewed by
Ken Tucker 91
This dark-tinged show is frequently very funny, never more so than when the pals gather for a diner meal, to whine and tease one another. The dialogue has a cutting crispness; the hour zips along, no matter how logy its antiheroes may become.- Posted Dec 7, 2010
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Reviewed by
Jessica Shaw 91
Based on Luc Besson's 1999 film La Femme Nikita (and mercifully, less cheesy than the 1997-2001 Peta Wilson TV Series), this promising adaptation follows the same premise. [10 Sep 2010, p.83] -
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Critic Score 91
Six seasons in, and Sunny continues to be a shining example of how to expertly combine smart political commentary with the basest of humor. -
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Reviewed by
Whitney Pastorek 91
It's a blast to watch Deschanel walk the line between broad comedy and complex emotion with growing scientific precision. -
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Reviewed by
Tim Stack 91
Very few shows can get away with genuine moments of emotion while also incorporating the phrase "dead-baby tacos." [1 Oct 2010, p.72] -
